‘Dark Knight Rises’ on Pace to Outsell ‘The Avengers’: Who Will Win Summer of 2012?

The Avengers has so far been the biggest blockbuster of 2012, garnering critical praise and breaking box office records. But coming down the pike this week is a threat to its supremacy: The Dark Knight Rises. Who will win the summer? It’s The Dark Knight Rises vs. The Avengers.

According to today’s Fandango press release:

“The Dark Knight Rises,” on the eve of its opening weekend, is outpacing the summer blockbuster “The Avengers” in ticket sales at the same point in the sales cycle. The final chapter of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy has sold out on Fandango more than 2,000 showtimes nationwide and it’s currently on track to become one of Fandango’s top-selling movies of all time.

It’s the ultimate smack-down. Batman, the greatest superhero ever in the conclusion the greatest superhero movie franchise ever, vs. a team of lesser heroes, albeit together on screen at once.

No doubt, we’ll finish the week knowing that Avengers was funnier and The Dark Knight Rises … well, darker, but which will be the better movie and which will do better at the box office?

The Avengers has already set the mark and it set it high on both counts. I’m as big a Batman fan as they come and I have a hard time believing it’ll even compete in the box office. It’s going to be huge and it’s going to make bank, but The Avengers’s numbers are just crazy. Plus TDKR is longer and won’t do as well overseas.

That said I think The Dark Knight Rises has the edge when it comes to quality. Early reviews are sparkling. We can already guess that TDKR will be nominated for best picture, but according to these reviews it might even win it. No small feat for any film, but especially a superhero flick. As well reviewed as The Avengers was and as good of a movie as it was, it’s never going to be talked about that way. It was a fun summer flick that did an exceptionally good job with its characters, but The Dark Knight Rises has the potential to be so much more (if it commits itself to an ideal, it can be a legend – ha! See what I did there?).

Which movie do you think will win the summer? Which will have the better box office? Which will be the better movie?